Court Throws Out State’s Sodomy Law

An appeals court in New Orleans has thrown out a 194-year-old Louisiana law against sodomy, saying that consensual oral and anal sex is protected by the right to privacy in the state constitution. The state court issued the 3-0 ruling Tuesday, reversing the 1996 conviction of Mitchell E. Smith, who had been accused of raping a woman but found guilty under the state’s “crimes against nature” statute only of having her perform oral sex. The decision also reversed Smith’s sentence of two years’ probation.